Wrestling for Fighting: The Natural Way

Randy Couture has been one of the poster boys for Mixed Martial Arts competition in recent years - and a good one at that. His words are well thought out, he's articulate, hard-working and talented. A lot is made of his age, as well. However, I don't think it means a great deal except to say he's an example of what hard work and good attitude can acheive. Erich Krauss and Glen Cordoza do a great job of getting these qualities to shine through in this publication. The book's dedication speaks of work ethic and self-reliance, as well as the importance of surrounding yourself with the right people and influences. One can only say that this is as much a recipe for success as any. It's worked in Couture's case, anyway. The book is - like most Victory Belt publications - a large format book. It's 11" x 9" and has 214 pages. It's a glossy book on high quality paper. It's also generous with photos and the photos are detailed and clearly show the techniques presented. I was critical of a couple of Victory Belt's publications in the past for proof-reading. This one does a lot better. It is very unfortunate that one of the very few errors that slipped through happened to be in a very noticeable place. Nonetheless, the writing is excellent and gets better with each publication. I'd be a real jerk if I said it took away from the book. As seems to be the Victory Belt template, the book opens with an introduction which spends twelve pages chronicling Randy's career. Erich and Glen are getting better at this every time. It's the best written of the Victory Belt intros by far and the one I enjoyed the most, as well. Take note, though, it may be that I simply enjoyed Couture's story more than the others. The technical portion of the book is broken up into three parts. The first talks wrestling, the second focusses on Greco-Roman wrestling and the third on adapting the wrestling game for Mixed Martial Arts. Each part is broken up into six to seven chapters concentrating on different aspects of Randy's game. As far as the techniques go, this is clearly the game of Randy Couture. The book also shares a lot of information with his earlier video series from Century. That makes this a great adjunct to the series, as well. The wrestling section starts with a comprehensive chapter discussing wrestling basics. This is followed by a look at four basic takedowns. This is followed (quite naturally) by a chapter on finishing the single leg. Clearly this is and area Randy considers key. Following this is a long section on tie-ups. Here, you really start to make the connection between the Randy you see in the cage and the one n the book. There are two defensive chapters in the wrestling section - Sprawling and Defending the Single Leg. The section on Greco is shorter, with a two page introduction followed by a chapter on pummelling and then basic takedowns. I enjoyed this section a lot as I picked up several of details that (as a Jiu Jitsu guy) I didn't know before.

Wrestling for Fighting is an essential addition to anyone's MMA library. The other reviews have already done a good job of describing the contents of this book but in brief: The first section of the book covers basic wrestling. The second section is Greco wrestling (upper body wrestling/throws). The thrid section covers wrestling techniques used in MMA. This is a very high quality book (as are all the books co-authored by Krauss and Cordoza). It is full of photos showing the techniques from mutliple angles. The written instruction is thorough and easy to understand. Some things to keep in mind. As the title hints, this is a book about wrestling. What you're getting is a top notch instructional on all aspects of wrestling by one of the greatest wrestling based MMA fighters of all time. Do not buy it expecting to learn submissions (other than a few basic "wrestling" subs) or standup striking (though there is plenty of ground n' pound instruction). This of course does not detract from the book in any way. There are already excellent books that cover striking and submissions. And since wrestling is an important, if not arguably the most important aspect of MMA (deciding where the fight takes place), it deserves its own volume.

Perhaps the most amazing thing about Randy Couture's career is that he fights in the heaviest weight divisions. Historically, these divisions have been dominated by strikers. Couture has demonstrated that it is possible to fight and beat big, highly skilled strikers with the the right approach to grappling. As other reviews have pointed out, despite its weaknesses, the book is a must buy for the serious fighter. In a sense, I could say its the book we've all been waiting for. Unlike most other grappling books, Couture places an emphasis on positioning rather than takedowns or submissions skills. He systematically demonstrates that these should follow directly from proper balance, arm and head control. While the book's title makes reference to wrestling, it is in fact a more general guide to basic principles of grappling that would be useful in a wide range of grappling sports. Regardless of your level, background, or goals, there is something in this book for every serious competitor.

It is about time that someone put out a comprehensive book of techniques of wrestling takedowns that are useful for MMA/submission grappling. This book teaches the fundamentals of freestyle and greco wrestling takedowns as well as giving applications and adaptions for the cage. It is not just a book packed with unrelated moves. Techniques take logical progressions based on the opponents reactions. It made me a better wrestler the day I opened it.

Randy "The Natural" Couture has recently shocked the MMA world by winning and then defending his UFC Heavyweight Title in two fights where he was an underdog. One of the major keys to his victories is his incredible use of wrestling inside the Octagon. In this book, he shares his best wrestling techniques, and how to use them in MMA competition. After an introduction that chronicles his career in wrestling & MMA, Randy beggins to delve into the techniques that have won him five UFC titles. The book is devided into three parts: wrestling basics, Greco-Roman techniques, and wrestling for MMA. Randy teaches you how to wrestle first, before anything else. Each section beggins with an overview of what will be learned, and is color-coded. The first section is on wrestling basics, and goes over the four basic takedowns (double, high crotch, low single & high single), then focuses on ways to finish the high single-leg possition. After that, Couture goes on to the basic tie-ups for the upper-body and how to execute takedowns from those possitions. Learning these setups are crucial to successful takedowns. He finishes the first part up with takedown defense. In the middle section, on Greco-Roman wrestling, we are introduced to the skills that Randy excels at. Greco-Roman wrestling concentrates exclusively on upper-body wrestling, and Randy feels it's better for MMA compared to Freestyle & Folkstyle. This part beggins with basic pummeling, which enables one to gain control of your opponent's body, then moves on to some basic Greco takedowns. The next part is on armdrags, a favorite of mine, and includes drills and various entries to get the takedown. The second section finishes up with underhook defenses, but not before "The Natural" introduces the reader to some of the most crowd-pleasing Greco throws, including the arm spin, headlock throw, and bodylock suplex. The third and last section is on utilizing the skills in the previous two sections in the MMA environment. This section shows the reader how to combine takedowns and clinch work with strikes and strike defense, and how to take down someone who's against a cage. It also includes some of Randy's favorite ground 'n' pound techniques and a few submissions from the headlock possition. If there's any negative side of this book it's that Randy doesn't cover basic striking, striking defense, or ground possitions. This might sound like a large gap, but the purpose of his book isn't to teach a full MMA curriculum, but to show basic wrestling techniques and how they're used in MMA. On a side note, I've been very pleased with the quallity of books that Victory Belt Publishing has put out. This is my fourth book from them, and they consistantly do great work. This book, like most of the others, has quallity photos, step-by-step instructions, and multiple camera angles of a single step. I look forward to their upcoming publications by Couture, Eddie Bravo, BJ Penn, Dave Camarillo an